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SEED program must reset its priorities

February 16, 2018

It's time that Delaware vocational schools get back to the mission of trades and certifications, not testing and rankings. "Why should an auto tech student take French, pass organic chemistry and graduate with 30 credits in order to be a certified mechanic?"

This comment was part of an editorial I wrote in 2014 expressing my concern that pushing all students toward college, while well-intended, was simply wrong. I stated that asking a student if they are going to college has to be replaced with why you are going to college. Before I get vilified for saying that college is overrated, let me explain.

For the past decade, Delaware legislators have implemented changes that emphasize getting more high school graduates into college.

This focus has led to free college for in-state students who graduate with a C average. This emphasis is built on the pretense that the more students who go to college, the better. If we truly want students to be successful, we have to stop telling them that college, at any cost, for any purpose, is the way to prosperity.

Roughly 50 percent of students who enroll in college graduate. In Delaware, the Student Excellence Equals Degree program, better known as SEED, has an even lower graduation rate. To date, the state has spent over $50 million on the SEED program with a request to increase the program's funding this year.

If the state wants to increase funding, and I believe it should, the time has come for a review of how the SEED program works, and a reconsideration of college being the singular focus of our educational curriculum.

It is easy to be critical of a program and not offer solutions for what changes you would like to see considered. For that reason, I humbly offer a few suggestions that would initiate a positive change.

Make the GPA requirement 2.75 across the board for college institutions participating in the SEED program.

According to a recent Harvard Study, key factors that contribute to poor success rates in college are students showing up with no skin in the game (it is free) and no clear expectation of what they want out of college.

Setting the bar low fails to prepare students for the rigors of what it will take to make it in college.

Most times the difference between a 2.5 and a 2.75 GPA is effort, not academic. It does not mean a 2.5 can't go to college. It does mean that if you want to go for free, you have to earn it.

Require institutions in the SEED program to develop a plan for improving their dropout rate similar to what is expected of high schools across the state.

The financial relationship that SEED institutions have with the state make them essentially an extension of Delaware's public education. High schools with poor dropout rates are required to implement policy that attacks the problem and report back to the state. It would be fair to expect the same from our SEED schools.

Allow school districts to develop curricula and set graduation requirements that include both rigor and reality.

Vocational and traditional schools need to be incentivized, not penalized, for providing educational opportunities that promote and support career paths the same way they do college paths.

I am not advocating for a reversal on making sure that students have a clear path toward college. I am advocating for students who are seeking a clear path toward a career. The choice for college, career, or both should be made by the student, parent, and school, not the state.

Expand opportunities offered in the SEED program by including institutions that provide certifications, apprenticeship, and vocational training. Specifically, include the adult education facilities located in all three counties.

Of all jobs in the state of Delaware, approximately 70 percent come from small businesses. Perfecting a skill is a key factor in gaining meaningful employment, and many times that skill can be developed through one- and two-year certifications right here in Delaware. Recent unemployment rates show Delaware's number has lagged behind the rest of the country. Emphasizing and expanding access to adult education programs that offer trade certification and apprenticeship programs will positively impact that number by filling local jobs right now.

The SEED program has successfully enabled thousands of students to attend college and should remain a priority. However, the time has come to reset how we get students to successfully enter the workforce.

Legislators, educators and parents should embrace the idea of tying students to an apprenticeship the same way they do a scholarship. At the end of the day, it is better to be a plumber or medical technician than it is to be a college graduate who is underemployed and saddled with thousands of dollars in student loan debt.

Mike Rowe's quote sums it up best when talking about the "college at any cost for any reason" mindset.

"When the government lends money it does not have to students who cannot pay it back in order to fill jobs that do not exist, we have a problem."

Eric Buckson
Camden

 

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